Solas/Dialogue
Solas' dialogue contains a list of conversations he has with his companions. Solas and Blackwall * Blackwall: Sera and I were just talking about you. We need you to settle a question for us. * Solas: (Sighs.) Sera's involved? So this question will be offensive. * Blackwall: Yes, probably. Sorry. * Blackwall: You make friends with spirits in the Fade. So... um, are there any that are more than just friends? If you know what I mean. * Solas: Oh, for... really?! * Blackwall: Look, it's a natural thing to be curious about! * Solas: For a twelve year old! * Blackwall: It's a simple yes or no question! * Solas: Nothing about the Fade or spirits is simple, especially not that. * Blackwall: Aha! So you do have experience in these matters! * Solas: I did not say that. * Blackwall: Don't panic. It'll be our little secret. * Solas: Ass. * Blackwall: Now who's twelve? * Solas: You have seen a great deal of battle. * Blackwall: We all have. * Solas: Not all, not like you. You live and breathe war. You understand it. It is home to you. * Blackwall: What's that supposed to mean? * Solas: We have both seen terrible things. We have watched death and destruction render that which we love unrecognizable. * Solas: It is calming to see something familiar in another. * Blackwall: What happened at Redcliffe, have you ever seen its like, Solas? * Solas: The distortion of time? I have seen magic accomplish many things, but ... no, that is new. * Blackwall: Magic has little place in a war between men. * Solas: Many mages are brutes, seeing nothing more than a larger ball of fire. * Solas: But those with imagination, those who use war to push the limits of the possible ... * Blackwall: I wish the Chantry could better enforce restrictions against its use. * Solas: Such rules never hold. Any who want victory will find some reason their cause merits exception. * Solas: The best we can do is ensure the world still stands when this fight ends. * Solas: The Wardens see themselves as the world's defense against the Blight, do they not? * Blackwall: Yes... why do you sound so skeptical? Doesn't everyone know this? * Solas: When an Archdemon rises, they slay it. What will they do when all the Archdemons are slain? Without Archdemons, there can be no Blights, is that the reasoning? * Blackwall: Right. Where are you going with this? * Solas: Nowhere. I hope they are correct. * Solas: I heard you in the training yard this morning. * Blackwall: Oh. (Sighs.) I was running new recruits through some drills. Should I be quieter next time? * Solas: No, no... It's fine. Children don't learn unless you shout at them. * Blackwall: You spoke of seeing death and destruction. Did you fight in a war? * Solas: There are struggles across Thedas at any given time. I doubt you would have heard of it. * Blackwall: An Elven skirmish? * Solas: In a manner of speaking. You? * Blackwall: I was a soldier. And I... Well... You know how it is. * Solas: I do indeed. * Blackwall: For all your experience, Solas, you don't carry yourself like a soldier. * Solas: You should have seen me when I was younger. Hot-blooded and cocky, always ready to fight. * Blackwall: Ah, youth. * Solas: It is a delicate balance for those who fight. * Solas: If they lack sufficient passion, they never become truly skilled, and die or leave the life. * Blackwall: But too much passion, and they end up dead - or monsters better off dead. * Solas: Yes. It is a rare soldier who can fight without letting it define him. Solas and Cassandra * Solas: Did you believe the conclave could achieve peace, Cassandra? * Cassandra: I had hope. As did we all. * Solas: The Templars went to war to force mages back into their circles, which the mages would never agree to. What solution could Divine Justinia have offered when all sides rejected compromise? * Cassandra: The war was going nowhere for either side. That they went at all showed that they realized this. * Solas: Or they believed the other side would relent. * Cassandra: We shall never know now. * Cassandra: '''I've wondered: How did you know to approach us, Solas? * '''Cassandra: '''The Breach opened, we were scrambling and barely had time to think... and there you were. * '''Solas: '''I went to see the Breach for myself. I did not know you would be there. * '''Cassandra: '''You must not have been far away. * '''Solas: '''I was not. I'd come to hear of the Conclave, but did not want to get close. * '''Cassandra: '''Hmm. Lucky for us, then. * '''Cassandra: '''It is interesting to hear a mage's perspective of our abilities, Solas. * '''Solas: '''I am pleased you find it so. * '''Cassandra: '''I am taught my abilities come from the Maker. You probably think it silly. * '''Solas: '''Your abilities declare the world real. Who, if not the Maker of this world, could grant such a gift? * '''Cassandra: '''You believe in the Maker? * '''Solas: '''I am always open to new ideas. * '''Solas: '''Seeker, you initially believed our "Herald of Andraste" was involved in the attack on the Conclave, yes? * '''Cassandra: '''I did. The evidence seemed damning, given the lack of an alternative. * '''Solas: '''Yet you changed your mind. * '''Cassandra: '''You also heard the voices at the temple - is it so surprising I listened to them? * '''Solas: '''Sadly, yes. Too few invested with authority possess the courage to alter their course. * '''Solas: '''They fear the appearance of weakness. * '''Cassandra: '''The truth is more important than my reputation, and anyone willing to accuse me of weakness is welcome to try. Solas and Cole * '''Cole: You're different, Solas. Sharper. You're in both places. * Solas: I visit the Fade regularly. Perhaps you are sensing traces of it. * Solas: You are a spirit who crossed the Veil and took human form. * Cole: Spirit or demon. * Solas: The two are not so dissimilar, Cole. * Solas: While the world may exert a pull in one direction or another, the choice is ultimately yours. * Cole: You don't need to envy me, Solas. You can find happiness in your own way. * Solas: I apologize for disturbing you, Cole. I am not a spirit, and sometimes it is hard to remember such simple truths. * Cole: They are not gone so long as you remember them. * Solas: I know. * Cole: But you could let them go. * Solas: I know that as well. * Cole: You didn't do it to be right. You did it to save them. * Inquisitor: Solas, what is Cole talking about? * Solas: A mistake. One of many made by a much younger elf who was certain he knew everything. * Cole: You weren't wrong, though. * Solas: Thank you, Cole. * Cole: I am sorry your friend died, Solas. * Solas: Thank you, Cole. * Cole: I didn't know there were spirits of wisdom. * Solas: There are few. Spirits form as a reflection of this world and its passions. * Solas: We will never lack for spirits of rage, or hunger, or desire. The world gives them plenty to mirror. * Solas: The gentler spirits are far more rare. We can ill afford the loss of even one spirit of wisdom, or faith... * Solas: Or compassion. * Cole: I will try not to die. * Solas: Do that, please. Solas and Dorian * Dorian: Solas, I take it you study spirits? * Solas: I do. * Dorian: Back in my homeland, we keep spirits as servants. * Solas: So I've been told. * Dorian: The things they can be made to be are quite marvelous, you should see them. * Solas: The Tevinter Imperium is not the safest place for an elf. * Dorian: Ah, yes. Point taken. * Dorian: Do you use spirits as servants, Solas? You'd have no trouble capturing them. * Solas: No. They are intelligent, living creatures. Binding them against their will is reprehensible. * Dorian: How much "will" do they have? They're amorphous constructs of the Fade. * Solas: Hmm * Dorian: There's no harm putting them to constructive use, and most mages back home treat them well. * Solas: And any that show any magical talent are freed, are they not? * Dorian: What? Spirits don't have magical talent. * Solas: Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were talking about your slaves. * Dorian: Solas, that little flare you sometimes do with your staff... You're redirecting ambient energy to your personal aura? * Solas: Yes. The effect clears magical energy and creates a minor randomized barrier to impair incoming magic. * Dorian: Fascinating. It's a Tevinter technique. I've never seen anyone in this part of the world do it. * Solas: The technique is not Tevinter. It is elven. * Dorian: Oh! That means we... never mind, then. * Solas: But do go on about the wonders of Tevinter magic. * Solas: I am surprised you do not practice blood magic, Dorian. Is it not popular in Tevinter? * Dorian: While we're sharing surprises, you've done a lot less dancing naked in the moonlight than expected. * Solas: Tevinter lore about elves remains accurate as always. * Dorian: I wanted to see you make flowers bloom with your song, just once. * Dorian: Solas, for what it's worth, I'm sorry. * Dorian: The elven city of Arlathan sounds like a magical place, and for my ancestors to have destroyed it... * Solas: Dorian... hush. * Solas: Empires rise and fall. Arlathan was no more "innocent" than your own Tevinter in its time. * Solas: Your nostalgia for the ancient elves, however romanticized, is pointless. * Solas: If you wish to make amends for past transgressions, free the slaves of all races who live in Tevinter today. * Dorian: I... don't know that I can do that. * Solas: Then how sorry are you? * Solas: I notice you used a nullification enchantment combined with an offensive attack. * Dorian: The nullification disrupts any ambient magic lying about. Things then burn hotter. * Solas: Don't you then waste an inordinate amount of magic overcoming your own nullification? * Dorian: Ah, no. I warp the Veil slightly to effect distance between the spells. * Solas: Of course. Have you considering snapping the Veil-warp to enhance the relative energy? * Dorian: Like cracking a whip? Yes, tried it once. Made my teeth taste funny. * Dorian: I can't believe you entered the Fade. Physically. * Solas: You think that is an achievement of which to be proud? * Dorian: It's the second time that's been done in all of history. That's not nothing, Solas. * Solas: In all of human history. * Dorian: The Fade is still a mystery to us humans, yes. Probably always will be. * Solas: Perhaps it's best it remain that way. * Dorian: Let me get this straight, Solas. * Dorian: You're an apostate - neither Dalish nor city elf - who lived alone in the woods studying spirits. * Solas: Is that a problem for you? * Dorian: No, no. You're a special and unique snowflake. Live the dream. * Solas: Your magical skill is impressive, Dorian. * Dorian: You're not the first to say so. * Solas: Would you not conserve magical energy with a less... flashy... style, however? * Dorian: Yes, and I'd live longer if I only ate rice and boiled vegetables, but that's just as unlikely. * Dorian: Ah, Solas. You startled me. You're always so... nondescript. * Solas: Please speak up! I cannot hear you over your outfit! Solas and Iron Bull * Solas: Iron Bull. I understand that among your people, you are... what is the term? * Iron Bull: Ben-Hassrath. Secret police. Spies, basically. * Solas: You spied upon your own people. * Iron Bull: Is that so different from Orlais or Ferelden? They have all kinds of people policing them. * Solas: '''What they say and do, yes. Not what they think. * '''Iron Bull: What you think is what you say and do. * Solas: No. Even the lowliest peasant may find freedom in the safety of her thoughts. You take even that. * Solas: Surely, even you see, Iron Bull, that freedom is preferable to mindless obedience to the Qun. * Iron Bull: How so? Last I checked, our mages weren't burning down Par Vollen. * Solas: You think Orlais and Ferelden would be better off under Qunari rule? * Iron Bull: Not really my call. I think most people everywhere have a system that works for 'em. * Iron Bull: When that breaks, you fix it. Like we're doing now. * Solas: Do not equivocate. Would we or would we not be better under the Qun? * Iron Bull: It's not that simple, Solas. * Solas: It absolutely is. * Iron Bull: Alright, Solas, been thinking. You wanna know how this place would be if the Qunari took charge? * Iron Bull: Orlais, Ferelden, all of it would be healthier under the Qun. * Iron Bull: But the war to make that happen? That'd be ugly. A lot of good people would die. * Iron Bull: So I'm not hoping it happens. There! You happy? * Solas: Happy? No. Quite the opposite. * Iron Bull: Oh, come on. I said I didn't want us to invade you! * Solas: No. You said this world would be brighter if all thinking individuals were stripped of individuality. * Solas: You only lack the will to get more blood on your hands. * Iron Bull: Tell me something, Solas. Do you think the servants here are happier then the people living under the Qun in Par Vollen? * Solas: It doesn't matter if they are happy, it matters that they may choose! * Iron Bull: Choose? Choose what? Whether to do their work or get tossed onto the street to starve? * Solas: Yes! If a Ferelden servant decides that his life goal is to... become a poet, he can follow that dream! * Solas: It may be difficult, and he might fail. But the whole of society is not aligned to oppose him! * Iron Bull: Sure, and good for him. How many servants actually go do that, though? * Solas: Almost none! What does that matter? * Solas: Your Qun would crush the brilliant few for the mediocre many! * Iron Bull: And then people feel like crap for failing. * Iron Bull: When the truth is, the deck was stacked against them anyway. * Solas: If your Qun is so wonderful, so fair and perfect, how does it create so many Tal-Vashoth? (if the Inquisitor is Qunari) * Solas: There are enough of them to marry and have children, like the man/woman we travel with! * Iron Bull: And for every one who turns out alright, like him/her, and his/her parents, dozens go savage. * Iron Bull: Most Tal-Vashoth are nothing more then savages. Killing's all they know. * Iron Bull: The Ben-Hassrath are trying to lose fewer people to that sickness. * Solas: It isn't a sickness. You are losing them because they see a chance for freedom! * Solas: And most of them are "savage", as you say, because your culture taught them nothing else. * Solas: They know nothing but the Qun. So even as they fight against it, they are guided by its principles. * Iron Bull: Watch it, elf. You haven't seen the Tal-Vashoth like I have. * Iron Bull: Try watching a Tal-Vashoth kill a Tamassran and her kids. Then we'll talk. * Solas: You fought the Tal-Vashoth for a long time, Iron Bull, did you not? * Iron Bull: Every day. * Iron Bull: I'd kill some of them, they'd kill some of my guys, and then I'd kill them some more. * Solas: No man can kill so many people without breaking inside. To survive... those you fight must become monsters. * Iron Bull: The ones that kill innocent people, yeah. The rest... I don't know. * Solas: The mind does marvelous things to protect itself. * Iron Bull: So, Solas, you go into the Fade on purpose when you dream? Just to... hang out? * Solas: Yes. The Fade holds a trove of memories to explore. Spirits know secrets lost to this world. * Iron Bull: Yeah, but they're spirits. You can't treat 'em like people. * Solas: Would many not say the same of the Qunari? * Iron Bull: Uh, no, because Qunari don't go around trying to possess people and turn them into abominations. * Solas: Instead, you conquer them and turn them into servants of the Qun. * Iron Bull: Oh, come on! (If the Inquisitor sided with the Qun during the Demands of the Qun quest) (If the Inquisitor sided with Iron Bull during the Demands of the Qun quest) * Solas: Iron Bull, how do your people put on shirts? * Iron Bull: We don't, usually. It's pretty hot where we're from. * Iron Bull: But I can get into anything with a loose collar. Just gotta ease one horn through and then angle it up. * Iron Bull: There's a term for getting caught unprepared that translates to "running around with clothing stuck on your horns." * Solas: Colorful. * Iron Bull: Nice job in that last fight, Solas. You really kicked the crap outta that guy. * Solas: I suppose. * Iron Bull: What, you don't think so? You ripped him a new one. It was great! * Solas: Unless the fight is personal, violence is a means to an end. It isn't appropriate to celebrate. * Iron Bull: I don't know. Gotta wonder about anyone who fights as much as we do and doesn't have some fun with it. * Solas: We have fought living men, with loves and families, and all that they might have been is gone. * Iron Bull: Yeah, but they were assholes! * Solas: Hmm. * Iron Bull: Something wrong? * Solas: A man in the last village. Something in his manner troubled me. * Iron Bull: The baker with the squint and the red nose? Yeah, spy. Probably Venatori. * Solas: Why do you say that? * Iron Bull: He watched all of us. A normal guy'd focus on you, because staff, or me, because horns. * Iron Bull: He had a dagger up his sleeve, which no baker needs, and the knot on his apron was tied Tevinter style. * Iron Bull: I sent a message to Red. She'll investigate. * Solas: You are more observant than you appear. * Iron Bull: The good spies usually are. * Iron Bull: You've got an odd style, Solas. Your spells are a bit different from the Circle mages or the Vints. * Solas: That comes from being self-taught. * Solas: I discovered most magic on my own, or learned it from my journeys in the Fade. * Iron Bull: I've seen self-taught warriors. Even the good ones have something awkward in their style, something that clunks. * Iron Bull: I don't get that from you. Maybe magic is different. * Solas: Or without magical training, you cannot notice the parts of my magic that "clunk". * Iron Bull: Hey, Solas, you ever do your Fade thing and pretend you can fly? * Iron Bull: Just flap your arms and zip around in there? Then maybe bang some hot Fade ladies? * Solas: No. Such behavior attracts the attention of demons. * Iron Bull: Aww. Demons shit up everything. Solas and Sera * Sera: '''You can make magic anywhere, Solas? Ever piss it by accident? * '''Solas: '''No. Wait...no. * '''Sera: '''What? How would you not remember something like that? * '''Solas: '''We were all young once. * '''Solas: Ar dirthan'as ir elgara, ma'sula e'var vhenan. * Sera: Pppbbthh! * Solas: '''Excuse me? * '''Sera: '''Excuse yourself, whatever you said and what I did, same difference to me. * '''Solas: '''I'd hoped, well, our people can sometimes feel the rhythm of the language despite lacking the vocabulary. * '''Sera: '''Uh huh? Know what else is good? Words that mean things. Like these, words. * '''Solas: '''Fenedhis lasa. * '''Solas: Have you ever had any interest in learning magic, Sera? While it has not manifested naturally, there are ways to determine whether arcane gifts lie dormant within you. * Sera: What? Don't make me think about that. I have to sleep at night! * Solas: Sleeping would give you the chance to explore the Fade. I could introduce you to spirits. * Sera: Right, you're messing with me on purpose! * Solas: Why would I do that? It is not as though I know who filled my bedroll with lizards. * Sera: 'Heh. Fair point! That was pretty good. * '''Solas: '''Our people used to be here. * '''Sera: '''Pfft, you say that everywhere. * '''Solas: '''It is more true than you want to believe. * '''Sera: '''I bet, right? Who wants to think about stepping on dead elves. * '''Solas: '''Din elvhen emma him? * '''Sera: '''Oh, you felt that one. * '''Solas: '''Sera, I notice that in a recent fight, you killed someone I was already dealing with. * '''Sera: '''You were doing it too slow. * '''Solas: '''Just to be clear. You wish me to manipulate the delicate balance of the primordial energy of the Fade... faster. * '''Sera: '''You're not making it worse. It's bad enough you people do that at ''all! Solas and Varric * '''Solas: Varric, you joined the inquisition when seeker Pentaghast questioned you? * Varric: She was very insistent that I help. * Solas: '''Interesting. * '''Varric: What's Interesting? * Solas: It surprised me that an elven apostate is the one who joined the inquisition voluntarily. * Solas: By the end of Hard in Hightown, ''almost every character is revealed as a spy or traitor. * '''Varric:' Wait, you read my book? * Solas: It was in the Inquisition library. Everyone but Donnen turned out to be in disguise. Is that common? * Varric: Are we still talking about books or are you asking if everyone I know is a secret agent? * Solas: Are there many tricksters in dwarven literature? * Varric: A handful, but they're the exception. Mostly they're just honoring the ancestors. It's very dull stuff. Human literature? Now there's where you'll find the tricky, clever, really deceptive types. * Solas: Curious. * Varric: Not really. Dwarves write how they want things to be. Humans write to figure out how things are. * Solas: Varric, you fought Corypheus once before? * Varric: Not my fondest memory, but yes, I did. * Solas: And you killed him. You were certain of his death? * Varric: Yes. What's on your mind, Chuckles? * Solas: He survived the explosion that destroyed the Conclave. * Solas: If he can live through a blast that levels a mountaintop, we would do well to determine how. * Varric: Even if we knew, would that help us? * Varric: The Wardens couldn't kill him, and they had a thousand years to figure it out. Solas and Vivienne * Vivienne: So, an apostate? * Solas: That is correct, Enchanter. I did not train in your Circle. * Vivienne: Well, dear, I hope you can take care of yourself, should we encounter anything outside your experience. * Solas: '''I will try, in my own fumbling way, to learn from how you helped seal the rifts at Haven. * '''Solas: '''Ah, wait. My memory misleads me. You were not there. Solas, Cassandra, and Varric * '''Varric: So, who do you think is the toughest: Josephine, Leliana, or Cassandra? * Cassandra: I'm right here, you know. * Varric: '''That doesn't rule you out, Seeker. * '''Solas: Cullen's not up for consideration? * Varric: Curly? They just keep him around to look pretty. * Varric: So here we are, elf, cleaning up another human mess. * Sera: (if in party) Who you calling elfy, jackhole? * Varric: Not you, other elf. * Solas: What would the Inquisition do without our stabilizing influence, Master Tethras? * Varric: I'd assume they'd just start burning things * Solas: That does sound like most humans I know. * Cassandra: If you gentlemen are quite finished? * Varric: Now, now, don't get touchy. We're just here to lend you simple humans our help. * Solas: Before you cause everything to explode. * Varric: Again. Category:Dragon Age: Inquisition dialogues